CELTA VIGO
MAN UTD WIN 2-1 ON AGG JUST ONE more step and Manchester United can start planning for a return to where they feel they belong – the Champions League.
It’s been a journey that has taken 14 matches, visits to eight different countries, involving thousands of air miles, but Jose Mourinho, below, and his team have finally arrived in the final of a competition they did not really want to be in.
Now they need to beat Ajax in Stockholm in 12 days time to make the transition from Europe’s second tier competition to the main event.
And that will define whether Mourinho’s first season in charge has been a success or a failure. Never mind the trophies, United need Champions League football for so many reasons.
It was the much-maligned Marouane Fellaini who made sure they got over the line on a fraught night.
Fellaini, so desperate to make amends for his ridiculous dismissal in the Manchester derby last month, followed up his good performance in the first leg by giving United a vital two-goal cushion early in the second leg.
Marcus Rashford, the match winner in the first leg, turned provider with the pass and Fellaini used his aerial power to do the rest.
But United did not do it in the grand manner. They had to work hard for their victory against a Celta team who ensured a grandstand finish when Facundo Roncaglia levelled on the night with a fine header.
A minute later and the Celta goalscorer was on his way to the dressing rooms with United’s Eric Bailly after a huge bust-up that saw them shown red cards.
Celta dominated early on and twice threatened to cancel out United’s away goal and Mourinho’s men were grateful for the sure handling of Sergio Romero, preferred again to David de Gea for Euro duty.
He safely handled a tricky low cross from Pablo Hernandez and came to United’s rescue again moments later when he acrobatically tipped over Iago Aspas’s shot after the former Liverpool player had got away from Matteo Darmian and cut in from the right.
Iago Aspas was a flop in his spell at Anfield but would have been guaranteed instant hero status on Merseyside if he scored in front of the Stretford End.
A nervous-looking United finally got a foothold in the game and Fellaini gave them the lead from their first serious attack after 17 minutes.
Rashford, the first-leg matchwinner, underlined the improvement in his all-round game by being the provider this time.
His well-struck crossfield pass picked out Fellaini running in at the far post and though Sergio Alvarez got his hand to the header and pushed it on to the inside of the post, the effort